There are moments in your life when having your parents be present means a lot. Getting married, having kids or graduating for example. It is a part of life where you are happy to show your parents what you have become and to make them proud.
To me, the Olympics were one of these moments. There is a lot of selfishness required to be an elite athlete, and my Olympic goal was mostly self motivated, and ultimately it was me who achieved it, but it would have been impossible to do without all my family, friends and supporters. Going to the Olympics was a showcase to everyone that my efforts and their efforts were all worth it!
It was also a tough moment because like I mentioned above, it was a time in my life where I would have loved for my dad to see me and to see what I had become. He passed away before seeing me become the athlete and the woman I became and it was a really emotional feeling to realize that he wasn’t going to be able to watch me achieve my childhood dream.
I remember when I was a kid looking at the Olympic ring he wore everyday and dreaming of my Olympic journey, and now at 21 here I was ready to fly to China and become an Olympian.
I was fortunate enough that my family was able to make it all the way across the planet and experience the magic of the Olympic Games with me. The 3 weeks I spent there with the team are forever in my memory. The preparation, the excitement, the racing, walking in the opening ceremonies in a stadium filled with 100 000 people, wearing proudly my red and white Canada gear! English is my second language but it is no excuse to have no words to describe what it feels like....even in French I can’t!
When I came home from the Games I went and got the Olympic rings tattooed on my right wrist. The Olympic rings mean different things to every athlete. To me, the Olympic rings are something me and my dad have in common. It represented to me what both me and him aspired to become and how he lived and I now live my life. Seeing the rings on my wrist everyday is a small reminder of my Olympic journey but it is also a way to make me feel like I will never forget him.
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Why Kayaking?
Kayaking is a family business for me. My parents both were paddlers; they actually met at the Lachine Canoe Club in Montreal where I still paddle today. My mom paddled until she was about 18 and then kept in the sport by coaching and helping around the canoe club. My dad was a successful kayaker who made the 1976 Olympics and was, while being a firefighter training to be part of the 1980 Olympic Games that were sadly boycotted.
When my brother and I were little we spent a lot of time around the canoe club where both my parents were coaching. We experienced the joy of being on the water at a really young age and kayaking was just a part of what we spent our summer doing! Our family was always really active and we were all involved in many different things. Although kayaking had a really big part in our life, my brother and I never felt pressured. We did and we still do it for the love of the sport and the outdoors!
When my dad passed away in June, 1998, kayaking became for me a sort of escape. My kayak was my own little island where I controlled everything that was happening. It became for me a way to feel protected from what was going on around me. Once you push off the dock you are in charge! Kayaking was also a way for me to keep the memory of my dad alive. He was the one that brought me the joy of the sport so it was a way to keep him close.
In 2008 when I finally made the Olympic Games, it was a really emotional moment. To qualify for the games I had to race at the Pan-American Championships, which were held that year in Montreal on the Olympic basin that had been built for the 1976 Olympic Games. It was the same course my dad had paddled on when he participated in the Olympics! It was a perfect day! All my friends and family were there, even some of my dad’s old teammates. When me and my teammates crossed the line first and qualified for the Games it was a moment of overwhelming happiness and of excitement! It was so incredible to be able to share this moment with so many people I knew and so many people that supported me along the way.
It wasn’t until I got out of my boat and was winding down that I felt this flow of emotion and memories. At that moment I felt very close to my dad and I knew from deep down that he was as happy as I was and that no matter what happened he was still supporting me 100%.
Cancer took my dad out of my life physically, but I strongly believe that there is something deep inside me and the people he touched, that is a part of him. It is there to make us remember that life is short and it’s the reason we need to enjoy it and make the most out of it!
When my brother and I were little we spent a lot of time around the canoe club where both my parents were coaching. We experienced the joy of being on the water at a really young age and kayaking was just a part of what we spent our summer doing! Our family was always really active and we were all involved in many different things. Although kayaking had a really big part in our life, my brother and I never felt pressured. We did and we still do it for the love of the sport and the outdoors!
When my dad passed away in June, 1998, kayaking became for me a sort of escape. My kayak was my own little island where I controlled everything that was happening. It became for me a way to feel protected from what was going on around me. Once you push off the dock you are in charge! Kayaking was also a way for me to keep the memory of my dad alive. He was the one that brought me the joy of the sport so it was a way to keep him close.
In 2008 when I finally made the Olympic Games, it was a really emotional moment. To qualify for the games I had to race at the Pan-American Championships, which were held that year in Montreal on the Olympic basin that had been built for the 1976 Olympic Games. It was the same course my dad had paddled on when he participated in the Olympics! It was a perfect day! All my friends and family were there, even some of my dad’s old teammates. When me and my teammates crossed the line first and qualified for the Games it was a moment of overwhelming happiness and of excitement! It was so incredible to be able to share this moment with so many people I knew and so many people that supported me along the way.
It wasn’t until I got out of my boat and was winding down that I felt this flow of emotion and memories. At that moment I felt very close to my dad and I knew from deep down that he was as happy as I was and that no matter what happened he was still supporting me 100%.
Cancer took my dad out of my life physically, but I strongly believe that there is something deep inside me and the people he touched, that is a part of him. It is there to make us remember that life is short and it’s the reason we need to enjoy it and make the most out of it!
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Family Business
I just came back from training camp and the holidays are here! I am excited to be able to go home and enjoy some time with my family! Having lost my dad to cancer, I cherish every moment I get to spend with the rest of my family!
Being an Olympic athlete in a summer sport in Canada means spending most of the cold months away from home. The team usually travels to Florida for training camp from February until April. We then come home to start the racing season and fly to Europe where the international competitions are held. The summer is spent in various locations in Canada depending on where athletes and coaches are from. We then travel to the city where World championship are held and race against the best in the world! Our off season is from September to October where we keep in shape but are able to do so at home. We extend our paddling season in November by travelling down south for a few weeks before the water starts freezing. Overall, we are away almost 6 months of the year! The holidays are definitely a time where we enjoy being home and re-energizing!
The years after my encounter with cancer made me really close to my family. My brother and I are really close and we both feel like we are the best person in the world to understand each other! I rely a lot on them to find the courage and determination to go through tough times! Being gone for long periods of the year in training camps is difficult but having the support of the people who love me at home is a key component to my success as an athlete. I strongly believe that this is a true statement for any sort of achievement. It is much easier to keep your smile up when people who you trust are 100% behind you! For sport, for school, for work, and even for healing! When you don’t feel like you are facing the battle alone everything seems more possible!
Being an Olympic athlete in a summer sport in Canada means spending most of the cold months away from home. The team usually travels to Florida for training camp from February until April. We then come home to start the racing season and fly to Europe where the international competitions are held. The summer is spent in various locations in Canada depending on where athletes and coaches are from. We then travel to the city where World championship are held and race against the best in the world! Our off season is from September to October where we keep in shape but are able to do so at home. We extend our paddling season in November by travelling down south for a few weeks before the water starts freezing. Overall, we are away almost 6 months of the year! The holidays are definitely a time where we enjoy being home and re-energizing!
The years after my encounter with cancer made me really close to my family. My brother and I are really close and we both feel like we are the best person in the world to understand each other! I rely a lot on them to find the courage and determination to go through tough times! Being gone for long periods of the year in training camps is difficult but having the support of the people who love me at home is a key component to my success as an athlete. I strongly believe that this is a true statement for any sort of achievement. It is much easier to keep your smile up when people who you trust are 100% behind you! For sport, for school, for work, and even for healing! When you don’t feel like you are facing the battle alone everything seems more possible!
Monday, January 4, 2010
Make a wish!
What is the most precious thing a 23 years old girl has? What is the one thing I wish for every time I blow out my birthday cake candles? My 23 years of living has made me realize how easy and simple the answer to this question is. Health!
Training has been a part of my life since I was 14 years old. I have been a member of the National Canoe-kayak Team since 2002. Since then I have become one of the fastest paddlers in my country, participated in and had great results at international regattas, and in 2008 realized my childhood dream of participating in the Beijing Olympic Games. I am addicted to exercising and being able to push my body to the limits. My life style reminds me everyday how lucky I am to be able to do everything I aspire to do. I am well aware of the most precious gift I was given and I am determined to use it to its full potential because I know how fast it can disappear!
When I was 11 years old my father was diagnosed with leukemia. To everyone I was surrounded by this did not make any sense. My dad was as addicted to exercise as I am now. He ate healthy, never smoked, had the biggest biceps in the world, was a 1976 Olympian (also in kayaking) and on top of all that, he was a fireman. To my 11 years old eyes he was a superhero. Superheroes don’t get sick. Superheroes always succeed! The bad guy never wins! Well we learned the hard way that nothing is a guarantee and that no matter how strong your body is and how hard you fight, things don’t always turn out the way they are supposed to. My dad lost his fight to cancer in 1998. Although cancer took my dad away, me and my 9 year old little brother Hugues still and will forever remember our dad as a superhero, our Rocky Balboa...someone invincible!
Years went by before I was able to cope with and understand what I had really been through. It is surprising how far away I pushed my feelings and how long it took for me to realize that he wasn’t coming back. I grew a lot from it and learned a lot about myself through it even though I was a young teenager. My family and especially my mom were a giant part of finding the courage to move on without ever forgetting.
Cancer has brought lots of ups and downs in my life. One of the things that it has taught me is how fragile our lives are and how fortunate I am to be strong and healthy. I saw how much of an impact health has on a person and I know it is the one thing I wish to hold on to for as long has a can! I promised myself at a very young age that I would use the gift I have and do everything I can to maintain it! Now, I am a person of extremes and I guess the promise I made to myself brought me all the way to the Olympics! But to a certain extent, and to a less extreme one, I think it is a promise that every healthy people on the planet should make to themselves. Realize the luck of being healthy and taking care of it by eating well, exercising and enjoying life to the fullest!
Training has been a part of my life since I was 14 years old. I have been a member of the National Canoe-kayak Team since 2002. Since then I have become one of the fastest paddlers in my country, participated in and had great results at international regattas, and in 2008 realized my childhood dream of participating in the Beijing Olympic Games. I am addicted to exercising and being able to push my body to the limits. My life style reminds me everyday how lucky I am to be able to do everything I aspire to do. I am well aware of the most precious gift I was given and I am determined to use it to its full potential because I know how fast it can disappear!
When I was 11 years old my father was diagnosed with leukemia. To everyone I was surrounded by this did not make any sense. My dad was as addicted to exercise as I am now. He ate healthy, never smoked, had the biggest biceps in the world, was a 1976 Olympian (also in kayaking) and on top of all that, he was a fireman. To my 11 years old eyes he was a superhero. Superheroes don’t get sick. Superheroes always succeed! The bad guy never wins! Well we learned the hard way that nothing is a guarantee and that no matter how strong your body is and how hard you fight, things don’t always turn out the way they are supposed to. My dad lost his fight to cancer in 1998. Although cancer took my dad away, me and my 9 year old little brother Hugues still and will forever remember our dad as a superhero, our Rocky Balboa...someone invincible!
Years went by before I was able to cope with and understand what I had really been through. It is surprising how far away I pushed my feelings and how long it took for me to realize that he wasn’t coming back. I grew a lot from it and learned a lot about myself through it even though I was a young teenager. My family and especially my mom were a giant part of finding the courage to move on without ever forgetting.
Cancer has brought lots of ups and downs in my life. One of the things that it has taught me is how fragile our lives are and how fortunate I am to be strong and healthy. I saw how much of an impact health has on a person and I know it is the one thing I wish to hold on to for as long has a can! I promised myself at a very young age that I would use the gift I have and do everything I can to maintain it! Now, I am a person of extremes and I guess the promise I made to myself brought me all the way to the Olympics! But to a certain extent, and to a less extreme one, I think it is a promise that every healthy people on the planet should make to themselves. Realize the luck of being healthy and taking care of it by eating well, exercising and enjoying life to the fullest!
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